October 2009

It is early Autumn. Through the misty darkness I trek along the banks of the River Boyne in Ireland towards Dunmoe Castle. It is a location that is a favorite of mine. In fact, an image I took of it many years ago was the first commercial landscape I ever sold.  However, that was at a time, when I was young, and thought blue skies and fluffy white clouds in photographs were the bees knees.  Nowadays, I usually run a mile from those summer blue skies.

Right! Enough of this reminiscing.

For the last few weeks I have been chasing moody autumnal landscapes in my local area. High on my wish list is a shot of the ruined castle at Dunmoe emerging from the swirling mist. I don’t ask for much! Do I?!

In my defense I have been working hard for the image. For the last three mornings I have made this pilgrimage along the River Bank, and on each occasion have come away disappointed. Day four and the stubborn Irishman is back standing in dew soaked trousers by a tripod.

As the dawn broke I waited in hope for my castle to appear from the mist. Slowly and silently a beautiful ghostly landscape was revealed.  I couldn’t help myself  and began to trip the shutter.

Mounted to the camera was my Canon 17-40F4L lens, my workhorse. If it was in a Budweiser Christmas advert it would be a Clydesdale. Using it at its widest I set about composing a landscape that captured the interplay of mist in the landscape.

Dunmoe Mist

Now I know the resulting image may not be everyones cup of tea, and that some folks may find the jet contrails annoying. But in my opinion they help the image. Combined with the tree framing the left of the image their presence and reflection in the water and sky help draw the viewers eye into the scene.

On that morning I never got the shot I came for. The image below is the closest I got. Somewhere in there sits a castle, I promise!

Dunmoe Castle